Amid the hullabaloo over the four-year DU course, a Government report prepared by Shailaja Chandra, former health secretary (Ayush) has recommended a 10-year MBBS/MD/PhD in integrative medicine as a long-term measure to boost alternate medical system in the country.

The report extensively focus on the current status as well as gaps that need to be bridged with the aim of improving public awareness and access to identified health benefits that each system offers.

The recommendations also include strengthening postgraduate education both quantitatively and qualitatively and to increase a requirement for rigorous and independent research the quality of which needs to be judged by publications in reputed journals.

“Instead of leaving the students to find their own feet, it would be better to expose them in the very first year to the work of good practitioners so that they understand how the public is accessing ASU medicine and for what conditions.”

“It would be useful to send the students to visit reputed ASU teaching institutions and private clinics so that they observe actual treatment in progress,” the report says.

The four-year degree course introduced by Delhi University from the new academic session beginning July to replace the existing three-year BA/BSc (General/Hons) course has sparked a major controversy with the DU faculty splitting into two factions.

The report recognises that both under National Rural Health Mission (NRHM) and by virtue of special orders issued by certain State Governments, ASU practitioners are permitted to prescribe modern medicine; but no one has spelt out whether that includes prescription of all Scheduled drugs and other interventions.

“Since there is no domain expertise on the functional requirements of Ayush available with the NRHM managers there is a recommendation to use the extensive human resource capacity available in the existing non-NRHM facilities to provide oversight for the NRHM related Ayush work,” the report says.

Likewise, the need for supervision of Ayush drug supplies which were found to be universally in short supply has been dwelt upon. The near absence of interaction between modern medicine and AYUSH doctors has been described bringing out what is essentially needed if the patient’s welfare is to be kept uppermost in view.

Referring to a recent case of an injured and incapacitated NSG commando who was paralyzed and received

Ayurvedic treatment but failed to get reimbursement for the expenses incurred, the report has stressed on the need for the Department of Ayush to convince all ministries to reimburse medical expenses on AYUSH treatment of employees.

Ms Shailaja Chandra is the author of this Status Report which was commissioned by the Department of AYUSH, Government of India in 2010. She was Secretary of the Department of Indian Systems of Medicine & Homeopathy, Ministry of Health &Family Welfare (1999-2002).

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Independent policy analyst. Oped writer and TV panelist on governance,health, women's empowerment and traditional medicine.
Was in the IAS for 38 years with 15 years experience in Central Government (Defence,Energy and Health sectors) and 23 years in Delhi Government, Manipur, Goa and the Andaman & Nicobar Administration.
M.sc Econ from University of Wales,UK and BA ( Hons) English Literature from Miranda House DU).Fellow at the Institute of Advanced Studies at IAS Nantes( France ).
Last positions held:
Secretary ,Government of India Chief Secretary, Delhi
Was Also:
Chairman of Public Grievances Commission of Delhi, (2004-2006)
Executive Director of the National Population Stabilisation Fund, GoI, (2006- 2009)
Mad about :
Plants, especially bonsai; animals; learning new styles of quick cooking. Love food from the Konkan and French cuisine.